If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

For paint, I tried two different paths -- and I'll see how each holds up over time. For most of the sections (everything that sits on the retaining wall), I cleaned the steel with detergent, rinsed it, dried it, scuffed it with sandpaper, and then used Krylon Industrial "Iron Guard" light gray primer. It's what King Metals recommended, and it's compliant for California (which has its own laws on this, apparently). Over that, I used Krylon Industrial "Iron Guard" gloss black. Both are latex.

Then, on some smaller sections, I tried a different approach. I cleaned and prepped the metal, and then used an automotive anti-rust paint: POR-15 "Blackcote," which is a variation of POR-15 that also contains UV protection. (Ordinary POR-15 will get chalky and lose its gloss when exposed to direct sunlight for too long.) POR-15 is not latex, it's a pain in the neck to apply, and it costs $45/quart. I used up a quart of it, and so far it's held up just as well as the traditionally painted stuff.

But of course time will tell.

I brushed (and sometimes rolled) the paint on. It's a lot slower than spraying, but it gives the paint more character -- which to me is what you want on a wrought-iron fence. It already looks like it's been there for a long time.

Spraying has its advantages, but I used less than a gallon of paint for the whole fence, which was nice from a cost perspective.

(do they do this anywhere outside of Southern California?) short-cut grass with its annual winter dose of steer manure.

I've not heard of "short-cut grass" here in the upper-right-corner,
but then, my thumb is very very brown. I can say, though, that
my wife gets a pickup load or 2 of composted cow manure every year
for the garden. I imagine that it's the same stuff, or at least comes
from the same source... The plants love it.

Great looking job, and a great report on the steps. Don't be so hard on your self about the little leg thing being out of place. Every time I build something and ask the family how it looks they think its perfect, then I proceed to show them all the mistakes they didn't see. You know the only people that would notice are those OCD welder people, you know how they are.